This January, Robert Zemeckis and Brad Pitt will begin filming what is being called a “World War II romantic thriller,” with no set release date at this point. This will be Zemeckis’ next project after his drama The Walk hits theaters this fall. Personally, I am hoping this is ready for the 2016 Awards season.
The project from Robert Zemeckis has been announced for some time now, with Pitt attached opposite Marion Cotillard. The two will play assassins who fall into a romance with one another while on a mission in Casablanca during WWII. Steven Knight, who penned Tom Hardy’s minimalist drama Locke, is writing the screenplay, and had this to say:
“It starts shooting in January… It’s based on a story that was told to me personally when I was about 21 years old. It’s set in Britain during the war and [is] the story of a relationship that involves espionage.”
“It’s more of a drama. It’s more of a story and a love story, but with surprising elements to it.”
“This is a very odd story. I was in Texas working as a dishwasher and doing all sorts of weird things. I was going out with an English girl at the time and her auntie lived in Texas, and she got talking about her brother who had been in the S.O.E., the British Secret Service if you like, and she told me this story that just stayed with me. I’ve always known it would be a film, and now it’s gonna be the ultimate. I can’t believe the cast we’ve got, I can’t believe the director we’ve got, it’s just a dream.”
This project looks incredibly intriguing. Robert Zemeckis is one of the more underrated, emotional filmmakers of his generation, especially now that he has decided to shy away from the motion-capture animation films (Beowulf, A Christmas Carol, The Polar Express) to tell human stories again. With Pitt and Cotillard on board in the lead roles, the untitled thriller has wonderful potential.
